The pressure of reality: What a wonderfully powerful phrase. And connecting the words of poet Wallace Stevens to the ‘tyranny’ of the omniscient, ubiquitous 24/7 news is brilliant. Let me explain. Recently, a good friend asked my opinion on the ongoing debates about Obamacare, the performance of the President with a couple of specific questions […]
The Pressure of Reality: Tyranny of the 24/7 News Cycle Read More »
“Could you do that?” The implication of the question: “Could you sacrifice yourself? My friend and I were watching the recently released film, Megan Leavey and were asking one another if we could lead a platoon of marines as they crossed an IED riddled land which looks like the face of the moon: Afghanistan. The true story
Could You Do That? Sacrifice Yourself? Read More »
Got a minute? To figure out out what to do with the rest of your life? It shouldn’t be difficult, right? And yet, we know scores of people who feel trapped in a dead-end job or loveless marriage or say they have no reason to get out of bed in the mornings. Keep reading and
Got A Minute? To Figure Out What to Do With the Rest of Your Life? Read More »
“When there is no food for three or four days, the children cry from the pain. So I make them mud cookies to fill up their stomachs.” The missionary priest, Monsignor Patrick Marron from Food for the Poor, quoted a woman living in a village of about two hundred people about 20 miles from Port
Mud Cookies: Imagine Feeding Your Kids Some? Read More »
Do an online search of the most popular topics for blog posts and you’ll find happiness to be among the top ten. But that isn’t the way to conceive of happiness. We need to change our way of thinking about happiness by coming at it through the back door and talk about unhappiness. By approaching
If You Are Unhappy and —-It’s Your Fault Read More »
It’s a peculiar club. At least for some of us. Marked by long solitary mindwalks prompted by a person or a thought which leads to a question and then another question. Until we realize the only way to rid ourselves of it is to write. Every once in a while, I come across another writer
Reflecting on Why We Write Read More »
Once Peter has been handed the keys to the Kingdom, Jesus harshly-even cruelly, rebukes him for his most understandable response to hearing Christ predict his own horrific suffering, rejection, humiliation and execution. Mark writes that Peter “took him aside and began to rebuke him.” We infer that Peter took Jesus away from the other disciples
Peter and the Keys Read More »
Ever since the industrial revolution, futurists have been forecasting the end of work. Recently, journalist Derek Thompson wrote in Atlantic Monthly about the immanence of widespread joblessness from the perspective of Youngstown, Ohio. For most of the last century, Youngstown boasted one of the more prosperous economies in the country, mostly due to the flourishing
The tension between ‘Being’ and ‘Action’ is fundamental. We know the importance of balance in our work and the need to take time to simply ‘be.’ But for many of us, like Martha in the Gospel, activity is what we do, essential to our nature. Recently the razor’s edge between activity and non-action has cut
Being Versus Action: Reflection Read More »
Number 12 Brady A friend from church decided to give me Brady’s Pro Ball 2014 shirt several weeks ago. The shirt sits on proud display in our hallway to be brought out when a friend with an interest in football visits. Or sometimes those with no interest. Joe , giver of the shirt, joined us